Of Songs and Gunshots
by aIchememe
Summary: Ed and Al never really did believe in ghosts. So when they are sent to a town where a so-called "banshee" has been luring children away from their homes, they become skeptical of who - or what - is really responsible for the disappearances.
1. Chapter 1

Ed stared at the run-down town before him.

It was - literally and figuratively - falling apart. The houses that were still standing were missing windows, doors, and in some cases, walls. They were covered in dirt and soot, their grimy exteriors creating a very unwelcoming mood.

"Well," Ed heard Al murmur from beside him, "We've seen worse."

Ed rolled his eyes, walking up to the nearest house and knocking on the door, planning to ask for directions to the nearest inn, though he wouldn't be surprised if he was told that there was no such thing.

When there was no answer, Ed knocked again, banging his automail against the flimsy wood.

The only answer he got this time was the door falling off of its hinges and clattering to the dirt path in front of him. Though he was surprised at first, he shrugged it off and sighed, turning back to Al. He would be willing to bet all his research funding that most of the doors in this town were that fragile.

Maybe not _all_ his funding. Mustang had already cut the meager amount in half because of a small screw-up he had made on one of his previous missions.

Ah, Mustang. How Ed hated that egotistical bastard of a Colonel. His hands itched with the need to beat the living daylights out of his superior for sending him on this assignment, but it would have to wait until he and Al returned to East City.

Ed steered his train of thought away from the subject of Mustang. He didn't want to make his already horrible day any worse by having to think about his commanding officer's disgusting face.

"Come on Al, let's go." Ed slung his suitcase over his shoulder and started down the worn gravel road. "Let's see if we can find an inn that's not falling apart." _If there even is one at all._ Ed added to himself. Al followed after him wordlessly, the metal _clank clank_ of his footsteps becoming the only audible sound in the silent town.

"Brother..." Al began nervously after a moment, "Do you think that there's anyone still living here? It looks like a ghost town."

Ed cast a couple glances at the houses surrounding them. He had to agree with Al, it did look abandoned. But that didn't make any sense. He was sent on a mission here to... to...

Actually, he didn't know what he was there for. He had waved Mustang off when he had called him in for his debriefing of the case at hand. Ed mentally face-palmed himself for not thinking of reading the case file on the train ride to their destination.

"No, it can't be." Ed reasoned, "It wouldn't make sense for us to get called all the way out here for a job if it really was abandoned." But Al's quick, nervous glances over his shoulder were not phased by his brother's reassurance in the slightest.

Though Ed was happily (well, not completely happily, since he was quite annoyed at the state of the town he had been sent to) continuing on his way down the long, wide road, Al felt trapped by the looming shadows the buildings around him caused. His movements were jerky and quick, and he practically jumped at any noise that was not the sound of his own footsteps. And though his body could not feel anything, his armor tingled with the sensation of being watched..

"What's got you so freaked out, Al?" Al jolted upright and spared a glance down at Ed, who was looking up at him expectantly. Al quickly looked back to inspect their surroundings once more. Once he found that there was no immediate threat, he turned back to Ed and whispered,

"I think that someone is following us." Ed glanced around for a moment as well, but then faced Al again and shook his head.

"You're imagining things. There's no one here." But Al noticed that Ed looked a little more wary than he had before. Maybe he could feel it too. After all, he had said _no one_ , not _nothing_. That still left possibility for a _something_ to come out of hiding and-

"Al, look!" Ed was pointing ahead of them, towards a giant manor at the end of the street. "I think that might be an inn!" Al looked over the mansion with great skepticism as Ed jogged ahead eagerly. Al stayed behind, eyeing the dimly lit house and scratching every detail into his memory. If the house somehow changed, he would remember.

But just as Ed trotted past a small alleyway in between two houses, a dark figure jumped out at him, swinging a large club at his head.

"Ed, look out!"

Stars exploded in Ed's vision as something hit him in the back of the head. Hard. He crumpled to the ground in a disoriented heap as he heard Al cry out and race towards him. Ed let his suitcase fall out of his grip as a large, calloused hand jerked him up by his hair and started shaking him around. The guy - as Ed now identified his attacker as a _someone_ and not a _something_ \- started to say something in a deep voice, though Ed didn't understand what he was saying through the thick fog that seemed to clog his head and senses. All Ed _did_ understand was that he _did not_ like being thrown around like some sort of ragdoll.

Ed elbowed the man in the ribs with his automail, grinning despite himself as he rolled out of his grip and onto his feet. He felt two leather gauntlets grab him by his shoulders and shove him back, and Ed stumbled as Al pushed in front of him and made to clock his attacker in the face.

He watched in satisfaction as the man fell to the ground, nursing a new bloody nose. Walking up to stand beside Al, he grinned when the man tried to scoot away as Al took a menacing step forward. Sometimes it was useful having a scary-looking younger brother.

"I-I'm sorry!" The man spluttered, holding out his hands to show he surrendered, "I didn't mean to hurt you! I was just waiting for the banshee, that's all! I swear!" At the word "banshee", Ed and Al gave each other a look.

"Banshee?" Ed inquired, putting his hands on his hips and looking down at the man. God, did it feel nice to finally be looking _down_ on someone instead of someone looking down on him.

"Yeah. Don't you know about her?" Ed shook his head. "Seriously!? But everyone-" The man caught himself as he scanned his surroundings and whispered, "Come with me. I can explain everything if you'd just follow me…" He trailed off as he stood up, gesturing them forward.

Ed didn't budge. "And why exactly am I supposed to trust you? In case you forgot, you tried to smash my head in with a club. And now you're telling me there's a… a…"

"Banshee." Al finished for him.

"Right. That." The man glanced at the glowing windows of the mansion behind him, then back at Ed and Al.

He shrugged as he turned back and picked up his club, walking towards the manor. "Fine. You don't have to trust me. But it's not safe out here." His dark eyes gleamed in the moonlight as he paused, "She'll find you. Just come to the base if you change your minds." And with that, he ran off in the direction of the so-called 'base'.

Al started after him, but Ed pulled him back by his arm.

"We can't, Al."

"But-"

"We'll just find a house on the street that's not half-broken and stay there for the night. We'll talk to the people in that mansion thing tomorrow, when we're sure they're not going to murder us in our sleep."

Al cast a longing glance after the man, sighing as he leaned over to grab Ed's suitcase. Ed was already inspecting all the houses along the street, knocking on the flimsy wooden walls and pressing his ear against them to listen for any strange sounds. Al watched his brother continue this pattern for about six different houses before he intervened.

"Are you _sure_ we shouldn't go after him?"

" _Al_."

"Brother."

"You know we can't."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Because I said so."

"But that's not a legitimate reason."

"It's still _a_ reason."

"Not a good one." Al mumbled under his breath as Ed went back to inspecting the houses. He stared blankly ahead as Ed kept looking. After a while, he found himself counting along with the houses Ed had checked.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten… And then Al had had enough.

"Brother, if you don't come with me to that mansion right now I will not hesitate to drag you along with me all the way there."

"Hang on a second, Al. I'll find somewhere, I-"

"You've been searching around for what feels like an hour! And if we stay out here, you'll probably die of hypothermia before that guy even has a chance to think about murdering you in your sleep!"

Ed quieted at that, pondering the notion of staying the night at the dimly-lit mansion at the end of the road. Before he could object, Al began speaking again.

"Good, it's settled then. We'll stay there for the night." And with that, Al spun on his heel and plucked Ed's suitcase from the ground, marching towards the manor. That left Ed with nothing to do other than scuttle after his younger brother grumpily, shooting death glares at Al's back all the while.

And Ed had kept himself so occupied with berating Al's back he didn't realize that they had arrived at the manor until he almost ran into said suit of armor.

Al had stopped in front of the porch, examining the entrance. Now that he was seeing it up close, the house didn't look all that menacing. It looked quite the opposite, in fact. The insides of the house were lit up by a warm yellow light, coming from what Al assumed was a fireplace. Though where he was standing did not give the most generous of views, he could see shadows of many people huddling around the source of light. Sounds of chatter and laughter floated through the front door, and Al was convinced that he might have thought wrongly about the town. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

He stepped up to the door, knocking on the thick, dark mahogany. The shadows inside stilled at once, and the laughter ceased. One shadow separated from the rest and cautiously made its way to the door. It creaked open slowly, a face coming into view.

And Al recognized it as the man from before. He lifted up a hand in greeting, the man's shoulders visibly slumping in relief when he recognized them. He threw a thumbs-up over his shoulder, and the rest of the people inside all began chatting amongst themselves again.

"Well this is a…" He faltered as he noticed Ed's skeptical expression as the young alchemist eyed the room. "... _pleasant_ surprise." He finished hesitantly, beckoning them into the house. Al gave him his thanks, dragging Ed inside with him. The two took a moment to take in their surroundings before they were interrupted by the man once more.

"I should probably introduce myself. I'm Colby Perks. And you are…?" Al began to speak, but Ed cut him off, stepping in front of him protectively.

"I'm Edward Elric, and this is my younger brother, Alphonse. I'm a State Alchemist here on official business, so if you have a problem with my rank, say it now. I-" Al gripped his flesh shoulder painfully tight and shoved him back before he could continue.

"Sorry for my brother's attitude." Al apologized as he tried to hold a squirming Ed in place behind him. "But we _are_ here on business, so we would appreciate any information you have on the situation at hand."

"No, that's alright," Colby began, "But before that, I'd like to apologize for what happened earlier. It was a mistake, and I'll make sure it won't happen again." In all honesty, Al thought the apology was quite pitiful, like one a kindergartener would come up with after pushing someone on a playground. But apparently Ed thought it was enough, muttering something that sounded like, "It better not," before finally managing to squeeze his way out of Al's grasp. Al finally gave up on trying to keep Ed's temper in check and sighed, letting his brother stand next to him and smooth out his clothes.

Ed heaved a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. He took a moment to take in the rest of the room, then looking to Colby expectantly.

"Well, first of all, what's this load of crap I heard about a banshee?"


	2. Chapter 2

"So you're telling me that this banshee thing has been 'stealing your children'?" Ed leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest and eyeing Colby skeptically.

Colby nodded, leaning forward eagerly and asking,

"So will you help us?"

Ed weighed his options. While Colby had been telling him about the banshee, Al had taken the liberty to read the case files. Apparently, the military had found some reason to suspect that the townspeople weren't just a bunch of superstitious bastards and had a legitimate reason for their worries.

But what Ed was hearing sure didn't seem legitimate at all.

From what he was grasping, they hadn't even _seen_ the banshee yet. They had just heard a woman singing eerily before and after a child's disappearance. This had apparently scared the townspeople enough for all of them to move into the town's giant inn, allowing them to 'keep their children safer', or something along those lines.

So Ed could either call them all liars and report back that the townspeople were worrying over nothing, or he could stay and show them that there really was no such thing as ghosts.

Ed heaved a sigh. It couldn't hurt to stay a few days to figure out what was _really_ going on in the town, could it?

"Fine, I'll help you catch your 'banshee'."

Colby leaned back into his chair with a sigh of relief, and Al made a small sound of happy approval from where he was sitting on the other side of the room.

"So, anyways," Ed began, standing up and shoving his hands into his pockets, "How many people have gone missing so far?"

"Four." Ed nodded slowly, glancing up as Al hauled himself to his feet and walked over, case file in hand.

"How old were they all?" Al inquired, handing the file back to Ed.

"The first one that was taken was 10. The second and third were twins, both 8, and the last one was 7. They were all taken on different days, and there's no visible pattern to the disappearances."

"Well that's just _great_." Ed muttered sardonically.

"So we just have to wait for the banshee to come to us?" Al rolled his eyes at Ed's comment, turning his attention back to Colby.

"Yeah." He confirmed grimly, "We just have to wait." After a moment, Colby heaved himself to his feet with a light sigh, obviously trying to break the bleak mood that hung over the room. "Anyways, I'll get you guys a room to stay in. You don't mind sharing one, right?"

"It's fine," Al said after a glance at Ed for his approval, "We do it all the time."

Colby nodded and gestured for them to follow him. He walked through the large, arched entryway out of the large living-room like space and led them up a curved staircase, revealing a long hallway with many doors on either side of the walls. Pulling out a set of keys from his pocket, he continued on his way until he found an unoccupied room, unlocking it and opening the door for the Elrics.

"I know it's not much, but it's all we have right now. We're not exactly the most financially stable at the moment."

Ed internally groaned when he saw the state of the room. It was very similar to the rest of the town's interior decorating (if it could be called decorating at all). Antique, with a hint of everything falling apart or already broken.

Colby seemed oblivious to the brothers' disappointment, handing Al the key to the room and heading out, shouting over his shoulder, "I'll let you two know if anything happens later tonight."

The door closed with a subtle slam, leaving Ed and Al nothing to do but continue to wallow in their disappointment about the room. Ed trudged over to the bookcase, running his fingers over the spines of the books on each shelf. Once he found one that didn't sound completely boring, he plucked it off the shelf and flopped onto the bed lazily. Al followed in his lead, grabbing a book and settling down against the wall on the right of the bed.

The brothers skimmed the pages of their books half-heartedly, only processing some of the words they read. Both were only truly interested in finding out who - or what, as the townspeople kept insisting - was really behind the disappearances of the children.

"Brother?" Al said after a while of indulging a book about different types of medicines, "Do you think it's real?"

Ed finished the sentence he was reading and then set the book aside, turning to face Al. "What?"

"The banshee," Al repeated, "Do you think it's real?"

"I doubt it." Ed assured him. "It just doesn't add up. Ghosts don't even exist, let alone steal children for no damn reason." He stared up at the ceiling for a moment before a thought came to his mind. "And Colby didn't even tell us _how_ the banshee or whatever steals them."

Al racked his memory for a moment. Now that he thought about it, they never _did_ ask Colby about that.

Or maybe Colby had never intended to tell them.

Al shrugged the thought off. In a time like this, he supposed it would be easy for it to slip the man's mind.

"I can go ask him about that now, if you want." Al suggested, glad to do anything that would free him of the boring, repetitive sentences that made up the medicine book.

"Nah, it's fine," Ed replied sleepily after a moment, waving him off, "We'll do it tomorrow." Al returned to his book, and Ed did as well, but Al couldn't help but laugh when he saw Ed's futile efforts to stifle a yawn.

"You're supposed to sleep when you're tired, brother." Al giggled.

"Shut up," Ed mumbled around another yawn. "I want to be up in case anything happens."

"I'll wake you." Ed was obviously enticed by the idea, sparing a longing glance at the window before he sighed, kicking off his shoes.

"You better." He mumbled, grabbing the fluffy, white pillow that now seemed so much more welcoming and burying his face into it. Al didn't even have time to tell him to take his jacket off before he fell asleep, his back rising and falling slowly to the pattern of his breathing.

Al shook his head, his red eyes glowing with mirth. Glancing from his brother to the abandoned medicine book on the floor, he stood up quietly, slipping out into the hallway and closing the door as silently as he could. He could see light coming from the first floor, so he crept along the passageway and padded down the stairs, hoping that the little noise he was making wouldn't disturb anyone trying to sleep.

Once he was at the foot of the stairs, he scanned the room for Colby. Finding no one, he peered outside through the window for a moment before walking into the living room. Al quickened his pace when he noticed Colby sitting next to the fireplace, tending to the flames and throwing in pieces of wood every now and then.

"Um, excuse me, Mr. Perks?" Al called quietly from underneath the arched entryway, not wanting to startle the man with a sudden entrance. Colby turned around to see the polite, yet slightly awkward suit of armor with him in the room.

"Oh, Alphonse," Colby greeted him with a warm smile. "What is it?" Al took his welcoming as an invitation to sit with him, settling down next to the man.

"I know this might be a touchy subject, but I was wondering _how_ the banshee took your children." Al began nervously. "You never got to explain it to me and Ed before."

Colby paused in his fire-tending duties as he mulled over the question. The flames reflected in his brown gaze and flickered around wildly before he turned to face Al again.

"Well-"

"Daddy!" A high-pitched voice cried out from behind the two, interrupting Colby and stealing Al's attention. A boy, who looked no older than five or six, was standing underneath the arch, hugging his pillow and wearing the most pitiful look Al had ever seen. "Daddy, I'm scared!"

"Troy, you should be asleep by now." Colby scolded, getting up from his seat at the fireplace and heading over to the boy.

"I know, but Lina was telling me that I was gonna get stolen because I haven't been nice to her today. And then mom wasn't with us in the room so I got even more scared!" Troy whimpered, clinging to Colby's leg as if it were a lifeline. "Am I gonna get stolen, daddy?"

Colby leaned down and pulled Troy into a comforting hug. "Of course not. No one's going to be taken anymore because we have people here to help us." Colby glanced over his shoulder at Al, pulling away from the hug and pointing to him. "See? That's Alphonse. He's here to keep us safe from the banshee."

Al gave a small wave, laughing a bit when Troy gaped at his armor in awe.

"Ok, Troy, I'm going to go upstairs to tell Lina not to tease you anymore. Will you be able to sleep then?"

Troy shook his head stubbornly, walking over to Al with his pillow still in hand.

"I wanna stay with the armor guy." Without asking anyone's permission, he plopped down into Al's lap and began examining the chinks and spikes in the armor. "Mr. Armor Man?" Troy asked while curiously examining his leather gauntlets, "Why do you have armor?"

Al noticed Colby give him a small smile and slip upstairs to scold "Lina", who he guessed must have been Troy's sister. When he looked back down at Troy, his huge, chocolate brown eyes were filled with interest. "Why?" The boy repeated.

"Um, well…" Al began nervously, scanning the room for anything that could help him come up with an answer. "I use it to protect myself." He said as his eyes wandered over to a lone rifle leaning up against the front door. "To protect myself and my brother."

"Does your brother wear armor too?" Troy inquired, climbing out of Al's lap to sit across from him on the floor.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because… Because he's much stronger than I am." It was a lie, and both Ed and Al knew it. Ed had never once beaten Al in a fight or a sparring match.

But Troy obviously did not know this, so he responded with a simple, "Oh."

Troy opened his mouth to speak again, but he was interrupted by Colby as he returned down the stairs.

"Troy, I told Lina not to tease you anymore. You have to go to bed now."

Troy looked like he wanted to argue, but in the end he just grabbed his pillow and hobbled off in the direction of his father. Before he made it all the way up the stairs, he turned and waved.

"Bye, Mr. Armor Man!"

Al giggled and waved back, watching as Troy disappeared into the darkness of the hallway. Colby sighed and ran a hand through his hair, chuckling to himself. He made his way towards the fireplace, throwing a small log into it before turning and heading into the kitchen.

"I'm going to make some tea," He called over his shoulder, "Want some?"

"No, that's alright." Al replied, getting up and following Colby into the kitchen. With everyone else in the inn asleep, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to make small talk for a while. He watched in silence as Colby got out a kettle and began to pour water in it.

"So, how old are you two?"

"Huh?"

"You and your brother," He motioned to Al nonchalantly, "How old are you?"

"I'm 14, and Brother is 15." Al said as he took a seat at the large dining table in front of the kitchen.

"That's a little young to be in the military, don't you think?"

Al shrugged. "I guess. But Brother's an alchemy genius, and we don't really have any family left. So when a Military officer came to our home and gave him the option of taking the State Alchemist Exam, he jumped at the idea." Al finished. It wasn't a direct lie, just a very… _stretched_ version of the truth.

"That's a shame." Colby shook his head sullenly, setting the kettle on the stove and turning it on. "I would never wish that upon any child. To join the Military, I mean."

Al nodded silently in agreement. Joining the Military at such a young age _was_ hard for both of the brothers. After a minute of silence and Colby becoming very interested in his tea kettle, Al glanced at the clock. 12:58 AM. Colby should have been asleep by now, shouldn't he?

But as Al began to speak, he was interrupted by an ear-splitting screech coming from outside. Colby froze in his spot, staring at the window in horror before darting out of the kitchen and grabbing the rifle that had been leaning against the front door.

"Go get your brother!" He commanded before racing outside, leaving Al with nothing to do other than race up the stairs, with only one thought in his mind.

 _The banshee is here_.

* * *

Ed was woken up abruptly by large hands shaking him. He groaned, rubbing his eyes and making an attempt at shoving the hands away.

"What?" He mumbled as the world came into focus. Al was leaning over the side of the bed, an aura of fear coming off of him in waves.

"The banshee!" Al hissed, "The banshee is here!"

 _That_ got Ed's attention. He jumped out of the bed, grabbing his shoes from off the floor and wrestling them on as he hopped out of the room after Al. Curious people poked their heads out of their rooms, and Ed warned them.

"The banshee is here!"

A gunshot sounded from outside and Ed sped up his pace, his black boots thudding against the thick wooden floor. He took the stairs two at a time, practically flying through the living room and out the already open front door. Al was right behind him.

But as Al took his first stride out the door, a tug at his loincloth held him back. He peeked over his shoulder, craning his head back to meet the bulging eyes of Troy. Apparently, between the time that Al had rushed up the stairs and come back down again, Troy had already made it there first.

"Troy, I really need to go; right now," Al said anxiously, glancing out the door then back down to Troy. Al snapped to attention again when he heard Ed call his name from outside, interrupted halfway by Troy's wail.

"Please don't go, Mr. Armor Guy!"

"Don't worry," Al reassured, leaning down in front of Troy and ruffling his hair, "We'll be back in no time."

And with that, he was out the door and on the way to help his brother.


End file.
